a positive way and i look forward to the future and having an opportunity to take that message, as we have been, to the rest of the nation. [inaudible question] >> senator lindsey -- me? i was thinking slower-elect, you know what i'm saying? >> remember this humble moment. [laughter] say that one more time. >> what does it mean to you personally [inaudible] -- >> i think what it means to me personally is that 18 years ago the city of charleston county county-wide gave me an opportunity to represent him based on values and issues. a couple of years later the folks from the house gave me an opportunity to represent their issues and their values. two years ago the first district gave me an opportunity

to represent their issues and values. what i've not ever heard on the campaign trail was besides the fact that you're black or because you're black, here's what we want to do. they've asked me questions about values and issues, and that's an amazing thing. i think it speaks to the evolution of south carolina and of our nation. it speaks to the heart of the good people in our nation and specifically of our state. i would say this -- more importantly than the complexion that i have, i think back to growing up in a single-parent household. i'd love to speak to the single moms out there and say don't give up on your kids. it may get tough, it may be challenging, but all things are truly possible in this nation. i was speaking with jim clyburn, another part of the family here. i was talking to jim on thursday and i said, what do you think? he's like i don't know what to think. and we sat there for a few minutes and chatted. when it comes to things specific to south carolina our delegation works incredibly

well as a team. [inaudible question] >> not if i'm smart. [laughter] [inaudible question] >> i haven't had enough time to think about a senate bill, i do believe in term limits. i guaranteed it in the u.s. house and i will certainly have a certain number of terms. in you start in the middle, where do you go from there? 12 to 14 years from this point is a good number. two full terms would be fantastic. but i better win the first one or the second one doesn't really matter much. [inaudible question] my understanding is january 3. >> [inaudible] what do you

think you can accomplish now [inaudible] -- >> i think the first thing that i'll recognize is the south will become the entire capital of the country because i'll be putting more miles on my tires, because now i have two years to represent the entire state and get re-elected by 2014. one of the things i hope we work on from the senate will be the same thing that i worked on in the house, which is when you look at the problems of our country, they are simply spending problems primarily. we cannot address from congress many of the issues and challenges that really affect americans. that's something that starts at home. the things that we can affect in congress, including the senate, is a spending trajectory. where are we going as a nation? when you're borrowing 42 cents on the dollar to spend it, you're probably on the wrong track. when you have a $16 trillion debt, you're probably on the wrong track. when your entitlement reform is

so far removed from the conversation, when spending reform is so far removed from the conversation, you're definitively definitely on the wrong track. if we are to continue to grow our economy we're going to have to look at pro-growth principles and make sure that that is what undergirds the future of america. that's why you've heard so much conversation about raising taxes. you raise taxes on the top 2% and you almost overnight, within the first 12 months, eliminate about 700,000 new jobs. you tack that on top of the regulatory reform, you're talking another 800,000 jobs "lost in america." so that's 1.5 million more americans out of work on top of 23 million americans. that's not the right direction. so my objective would start with a conversation of tax reform and spending control. >> [inaudible]

>> i would think that most americans are members of the tea party principally. we believe in limited government. we believe in lower taxes. we believe in keeping the government out of your pockets. if you believe in freekts, -- free markets, those are the basic tenets of the tea party. i would hope we all believe in that. that would be a decisive yes. >> [inaudible] >> you look at his scorecard with the heritage action. he was a 98 and i was closing in on i think it was a 090. there was a couple that separated us, maybe some of the more well-known votes. other than that, i'm not quite sure where we disagree. i would think philosophically we're on the same page and

hopefully we'll continue to work together. i look forward to hearing more from the senator. >> last question. >> [inaudible] >> that's a great question. you know, i think if john was here with me today he would say, tim, don't forget, it's not about growing up in life, it's about moving forward. and we define that differently. some see the senate as a move up, and i certainly do as well in a way. but i'm hoping that the message that the good lord's placed in my heart gets a shot and a leap forward, that we'll have the opportunity to let the message of real hope and opportunity resonate in places where it hasn't been before. and so i hope what john would say to me is celebrate for about 24 hours and get back to work. thank y'all very much. [applause] >> later in the week senator

demint gave his farewell speech from the senate floor. he's retiring in january to become president of the heritage foundation. this is about 20 minutes. >> thank you, mr. president. i would like to give what i think we call here my farewell address. we spent a lot of time in the office writing out a long speech, and once i read it i realized it really is more emotional than i thought, and we've set that speech aside. last night i made myself a lot of notes of what i wanted to say, and then i realized this morning that was really just trying to get the last word in on a lot of the politics we've been discussing. so i set that aside and just decided to speak from my heart for a few minutes. . certainly, this is much more emotional than i thought, and as i look around certainly this is much more emotional than as i thought. and as i look around this room the realization that i'm

standing here on the senate floor for the last time is a loss to digest and it makes me appreciative of the privilege we've all been given by the american people, and particularly those who have come before us, who have given their lives for us to have the opportunity to settle our differences in a civil and democratic way. so this is a great opportunity and a privilege to just share a few thoughts before i go on to the next phase of my life. i first have to give my particular thanks to my wife, debbie, who for the last 15 years has spent many days and nights alone as i have tried to come up here and change things in washington. she's often reminded me or questioned how i thought i could change the world, when i couldn't even mow the grass. but she has been a supporter

and certainly so important, as i left my children who were still in school and i began serving in the house, kept them on the right track. and i particularly want to thank them. all of you who served here know that when we sign up for public life we also sign our families up for public life. in a lot of ways it makes their lives much more difficult. so i want to thank my children, my wife, debbie, and family for putting up with this and being such a support. i also have to thank the people of south carolina who have entrusted me with this job in the senate for the last eight years and in the house six years before that. all of you know who served for your states. as you've traveled around and met people, toured businesses and spoken to groups, it really creates a deep love and appreciation for people back

home. i look at what we're making in south carolina in these small businesses. you drive by not knowing anything is there, and you go in and find that they're making things and shipping things all over the world. it just makes you very proud of what we're doing in south carolina, and i know all of you feel the same way about your states. i'm very appreciative of the people of south carolina who have given me this opportunity. very grateful to my colleagues who have often scrapped with on a lot of issues. i appreciate their patience on both sides. i think i can leave here claiming to have good friends who are democrats and republicans. i'm particularly grateful for a lot of the new senators, some who are sitting here today, who i've had the opportunity working with their folks in their states and all around the country, to elect some new people to the senate that are bringing the right ideas and

some new voices to those principles that we know have made our country successful. and so i feel like as i leave the senate that we are leaving it better than we found it and that our focus now, despite the difficult challenges, is really on america and how we turn america around. i should spend a lot of time and most of my time on thanking my staff. i have to say that my greatest inspirations have come from the staff that i've had the opportunity to serve with in the house and the senate. as all of you know who are serving here in the senate, this country is being run by people in their 20's and 30's who get us so busy that they're having to follow us to meetings to tell us where we're going and what we'll be talking about. but it's incredible to see that

these young people, particularly those that i've served with, have such a passion for our country and freedom, and they're willing to put it all on the baseline to make a difference here -- on the line to make a difference here. they feel like my family, but it's encouraging to see them move to other offices and taking their ideas and that courage to other places on the hill. i want to add my thanks to all the hill staff, you folks sitting around the front here and those who have worked with us. i know sometimes we've pressed the envelope a little bit on things that we were trying to get done, and i've seen a lot of very intelligent, active and engaged staff all across the hill, both democrat and republican, and i'm very thankful for what you do. about 15 years ago i started campaigning for the house. i had never run for a public

office. at that time i believed -- and i think it still holds true today -- that there were normal people like me and then there were politicians. i was a businessman. i had ha small business for about 15 years -- a small business for about 15 years. i had four children, was active in my church, in the community, and i had begun to see that well-motivated, well-intended government policies would make it harder for us to do the things at the community level that we know actually worked. and that's really what i've always been about here. it really was not about politics. i've had really no strong political affiliation before i decided to run for office. but i saw ideas from the time i was a young person, ideas that worked. and i actually saw this statement the other day that i'd like to read, because it reflects what i think a lot of us know works in our country.

and this is one thing i will try to read today. i do not choose to be a common man. it is my right to be uncommon. if i can seek opportunity, not security, i want to take the calculated risk to dream and to build, to fail and to succeed. i refuse to barter incentive for dole. i prefer the challenges of life for guaranteed security. the thrill of fulfillment for the state of calm utopia. i will not trade freedom for beneficence nor my dignity for a handout. i will never could youer before any master save my -- cower before any master save my god. it is my heritage to stand erect, proud and unafraid, to

think and act for myself. enjoy the benefit of my creations. to face the whole world boldly and say i am a free american. i've seen this on a plaque called "the american creed." in south carolina, at least, we've adopted this as what we call the republican creed. but it's really not a republican idea or a political idea, it's an american idea. and the ideas in this state are ideas that we all know work and ideas that we would hope for our children and everyone around us. we know that there are people all around us who are having difficulty. but this idea of helping them to become independent, self-sufficient, responsible, creates the dignity and fulfillment in their life that we know we want for all americans. this is not for a small few.

this is an american idea and it's an idea that i know has worked in my life and i've seen it work all around me. and that's what i'd like to talk about for just a second today. it's not the political ideas, but ideas that we can look back through history and all around us today and point to them and say that's working. i think if we did that more here in the political sphere we might could find a lot more consensus. as we look around the country today, we can see a lot of things that are working. sometimes we couch them in our political rhetoric, but i can guarantee you they're not being done for political reasons at the state level, they're being done because they work and that they have to get things to work at the state level. we saw last week the state of michigan adopted a new law that

gave workers the freedom not to join a union. now, they didn't do that because it was politically expedient or that they thought it was a good idea, because it actually is probably going to get a lot of the politicians in hot water in michigan. but what they did is looked at 23 other states who had adopted the same idea and saw that they were attracting businesses and creating jobs, and these states without raising taxes had more revenue to build schools and roads and hospitals. it was just an idea that worked. it's not a political idea to give people the freedom not to join a union, it's an american idea and it's an idea that works. we can look around the country today and again, we make these things political and give them labels that are good or bad, depending on, i guess, which party you're in. but we know a number of states

have been real innovative and creative with what they're doing in education. we see what they've done in florida to create more choices. in louisiana particularly. forced by hurricane katrina to start a new system, in effect, and they see that more choices and students for parents to choose are helping low-income at-risk kids, minority kids. we can see it working. and it's not political. it's an american idea to give parents more choices to put their children in an environment that they can succeed. it's an idea that works. we can look around the country at states that try to create a more business-friendly environment, not because they're for businesses or for any political reason or they're for special interests, but they know the only way to get jobs

and prosperity and create opportunity is to create an environment where businesses can thrive. we make it political here. and we ask our constituents to make choices between employers and employees. but states like texas have created a business-friendly environment with lower taxes and less regulation. they've passed some laws that reduce the risk of just frivolous lawsuits. and what they've seen is businesses moving to their state. they've seen jobs and opportunity created not for the top 2%, but expanding a middle class, creating more opportunities and more tax revenues to do the things at the state government level that we all want for everyone that lives there. this is not for a few. this is for 100%. and you see specials now on tv comparing california and texas,

businesses moving out and delegations from california going to texas to try to figure out why businesses are moving and families are moving. it's not political at all. we make it political and we talk about it in political terms, but creating an environment where businesses can thrive is an american idea and it's an idea that's working. and we see it all over the country, where some states are going down one road with higher taxes and bigger government and more spending, and they're losing to states like texas and i hope more and more like south carolina. they're moving to where they can thrive. and this benefits every american. we look at energy development and we talk about that at the national level of how it can create prosperity for our country if we open it up.

we don't have to guess at whether or not it works. i mean, we can look at north dakota, you can look at pennsylvania. states that have gone around the federal rules and figured out how to develop their own energy are creating jobs and tax revenue to their governments. they were able to lower their taxes, use the revenue to improve everything about their states. and here we make it political and partisan on whether or not our country can develop more and more energy. but at the state level it's just about what works. and all we have to do is look at what works. this is not rocket science. i came to washington as a novice in politics, believing in the power of ideas, seeing how ideas can revolutionize

different industries, can create new products and services meeting the needs of customers everywhere. and that's what i hoped we could do here in washington. maybe naively i went to work in the house, often working with the heritage foundation to create a better product here in washington. i saw social security, and not many people look below the surface, but we knew it was going broke. we knew we were taking in money that people were paying for this social security retirement benefit, but we were spending it all. and i thought, what an opportunity it would be for future generations, for my children, if we actually saved what people were putting into social security for their retirement. and you didn't have to do too much math to see that even for middle-class workers that americans could be millionaires when they retired if we even kept half of what was put into

social security for them. it seemed like a good idea to create wealth and independence for individuals in retirement. but we made it a political idea and somehow convinced americans that it was riskier to save their social security contribution than it was just to spend it. i'm leaving the senate to work on ideas that i know work. i've seen them work all over our country. we can look all over our country and showcase these ideas that are working. and i know that they're power and ideas. but i've learned one thing about the political environment. unless there's power behind the ideas, that they will not emerge here in the congress, that there's too much pressure from the outside on a status quo or to protect some political interest. and no matter how much we show that it's working, it won't be

adopted here unless we're able to win the argument with the american people. i spent most of my life in research and advertising and marketing and strategic planning. what i hope i can do from this point is to take these ideas and policies that i know work, and the heritage foundation for 40 years has been creating policies and analysis that show these ideas work. and what i hope i can do is to help connect those ideas with real people, real faces, and to show these people that these ideas are not theory, they're not political policies, but they're ideas that are working right at their state or the state right next to them. and if we can win the arguments, if we can win the hearts and the minds of the american people with these ideas, i know that we can engage them and enlist them to convince all of you here to set

the politics aside, the parties aside, and to adopt those ideas that work. my hope is to make conservative ideas so pervasive, so persuasive across the country, that politicians of all parties have elected. i'm not leaving here to be an advocate for the republican party. i hope that we can create more common ground between the political parties by showing everyone that ideas that work for their constituents and our constituents are right in front of our faces if we're willing to set aside the pressure groups, the special interests, and just focus on what's working. over the next few years, we're going to see more and more states doing the right things becoming more prosperous,

creating a better environment for people to live and work and we're going to see some states that will continue to raise taxes, to create more regulations, make it harder to start businesses and to be profitable in those states. they will continue to lose businesses and people. and many of those states will come here to washington and ask us to help them out from their bad decisions. i hope at that time that we can show by pointing at these states and these right ideas that we know the solutions at the state level and that we also know that we can change how we think here at the federal level and make our country work a lot better. i i leave here with a lot of respect for my colleagues. i know my democrat colleagues believe with conviction their ideas. and i know my republican colleagues do too. but i hope we can look at the facts. i hope we can look at the real

world. i hope we can look at what's working and set aside the politics and realize what really makes this country great and strong is when we move dollars and decisions out of washington back to people and communities and to states, that it works. not for 2% but for 100% of americans. i feel like our customers in the senate, at the heritage foundation, or wherever we go, are 100% of americans who these ideas can work for to build a better future and a stronger america. and i'm not leaving the fight. i hope to raise my game at my next phase. and i hope that i can work more closely with all of you, as well as governors and state legislators, to take these ideas and convince americans as well as their legislators, their senators, and their congressmen that we have the solutions all

around them -- all around us if we have the courage to adopt -- to adopt them. i thank you for this opportunity to serve. certainly i'll miss my relationships. but i hope that we'll have the opportunity to continue to work together for what is the greatest country in the world and what i believe a generation before us that could be the greatest and most prosperous generation of all if we just look to the ideas that work. thank you, madam president. and i thank my colleagues. i yield the floor and note >> republican senator kay bailey hutchison is also retiring. she was the first woman to represent texas in the senate. she served as vice president of the chairman and senator hutchison choice not to seek

re-election. this is half an hour. address this chamber for possibly the last time as the senior senator from the great state of texas. have to say it is an ironic note that if i had given my farewell address last week, it would have been so much joy in the halls of the citol ringing with the laughter and the anticipation of our season's happiest time, but in just one weekend a sadness has set in with the news of a massacre of innocent children in newtown, connecticut, followed by the loss of our wonderful colleague, senator danny inouye so i will leave this extraordinary institution and experience with a heavy heart for those who have been lost

just in the last few days. i do want to thank the people of texas for asking me to represent them in washingto i want to thank the many peopl who have served on my staff for almost 20 years. i have t say i am touched that both benches on both sides of this room are filled with my staff members who have been so hardworking and so loyal and have produced so much in 20 years for our state and nation, and i thank them. i do want to thank my colleagues and all the people who work here -- senators, but also those who work behind the scenes to make our lives as good as they can be with the hard hours that we all have. those who keep our buildings safe and clean, who work in the libraries, the shops, the

cafeterias, and who guide tens of thousands of tourists through our nation's beautifulapitol each year. i want to thank my husband ray and our two children, bailey and houston -- they're 11 years old now, and so many of my colleagues that i -- that were here when i started bringing my children as babies here have watched them grow up. the senate isn't easy on families. they have sacrificed so i could serve the people of texas, and i'm grateful for their patience and generosity. they have loved coming to the capitol during these times. 11 years for the children and 20 for my husband ray. and i know my children's fondest memory, if i ask them what do i remember most about visits to the capitol, it is playing soccer in the russell building's

hallways in the evenings when the coast is clear. and i would not be here todayf it were not for my parents who gave me the gifts of strong values, unwaivin unwavering supd the education to be whatever i wanted to be. i must say that my parents were surprised when they saw what i wanted to be. th would have never thought that the dauter, growing up in lamarck, texas, a town of 15,000 good people, would think that she could be a united states senator. we had a wonderful public school system, and i am proud to say i am a product of public education. my public schools in lamarck, wise wch were excellent and my university of texas and university of texas law school preparede to be what i could

be. so it has been a privilege to walk these halls in the capitol of the world's greatest and longest-serving democracy. i think back to the days that stand out in our memories -- september 11, 2001, of course, is the one none of us will ever forget. we know exactly where we we the minute we knew there was a terrorist attack on america. and though we sufred a horrific atashg thetrength, re-- attack, the strength, resilience and extraordinary acts of kindness of the american people showed the world that attempts to destroy our way of life would never succeed. on that day, no one could get in or out of washington and many communications networks were iin-- were inoperable. so when the pentagon was hit and the capitol was evacuated, my staff and i walked one block to

my home on capitol hill, just as an ark example, the husband of y office manager worked in the section of the pentagon that had been hit. so we were on the phone -- the one phone that we had -- to hospitals, the police, to anyone that we thought might be able to tell us if he was safe. thankfully, he was fine. but ther were so many who waited for hours, who called hospitals to hear from their loved ones. sometimes the news was a relief, and sometimes they waited in vain for good news. and i have to say that it was an incredible moment when the senators who could find each other wherever they had gone from the capitol, we finally gathered early -- well, late afternoon in the capitol police headquarters to talk to our

leaders, who had been taken to an undisclosed location. and they said, we don't want anyone to come, but we are going to the steps of the capitol to hold a press conference. we don't want anyone there because we don't know if it's safe. but we want to tell the press that we are going to open for business tomorrow and do the nation's business, even though there was the suspicion that the capitol had been on the terrorists' list of targets. every single one o the senators -- and there were i think 60 to 70 who had made it to the capitol police -- did come to the capitol steps, as did the house of representatives. and after the press conference was held by the leaders, all of the several hon wh hundred who d gathered spontaneously broke out

nging "god bless america." that was a time that said, this is the strength of our country, and we will not be defeated. as i exit the senate, i am aware that we are divided -- as a legislative body and as a country. i do not think we have different goals, not here and not in america. but we do have different ways of reaching them. congress suffers a great deal of criticm for partisan acrimony, but while we may disagree politicall and air our opposition in this chamber, it is the conversation behind the scenes that cements and defines our relationships. i will leave the senate knowing i have worked with men and women of great patriotism, intellect, and heart from both sides of the aisle. i would like to thank my

colleagues,emocrat and republican, for the many wonderful years working together. we engaged in rigorous debate. the american people should know that either way we are collegial and we all understand that our stateates have different needs,d there will be differences in priorities. but in the senate, an adversary today will be an ally tomorrow. its a rare occasion for acrimony to turn personal. madam president, it would be my parting hope that ts collegiality will not be lost. protecting the rights of the minority has assured that every senator's voice is heard and every state represented is heard. as intended by our constitution. open debate and open amendments are what differentiates the senate from the house.

when our committees function, we pass bills in vigorous markups, we put the bills in shape for floor debate. if they don't go through committees and are not allowed floor amendments, the quality of the legislation suffers and mistakes are often made. let me give you some examples of how relationships can produce results. during the anthrax scare, the hart building was closed for a month, which made it very difficult, of course, for senators based there to do their work. so senator dianne feinstein's staff joined in my offices in the russell building. my chief of staff at the time gave them full access. one of senator feinstein's staff members commented on that. "a republican office giving democrats free rein?"

but my chief of staff just said, they had full access because we trusted them. senator feinstein and i have teamed up to pass important legislation. the hutchison-feinstein overseas basing commission that studied the training capabilities and costs ofverseas military bases to determine their value compared to american bases. this resulted in consolidation and closures that brought thousands of troops back to the united states where training and rapid deployment were superior. we passed the feinstein-hutchison breast cancer stamp bill. through voluntary purchase it has raised $72 million for breast cancer research. that was senator feinstein's idea. and senator feinstein and i took the amber ale for abducted children nationwide, which has

accounted for rescuing documented almost 600 children since its passage. i remember when senator hillary clinton stopped by with her chief of staff to wish me a happy birthday the first year she was in the senate. it was just a few months after she hadrrived, and my staff was surprised -- and possibly a bit star-struck -- to see the former first lady walk into the room. we went on to work together in vital voices, a global partnership dedicated to supporting and empowering women leaders and social entrepreneurs in emerging economies. we alsoeamed up with senators mikulski and collins to assure public schools had the option to offer single-sex schools and classes. after i visited with secretary of education rod paige, the young women's leadership academy

in the harlem area of new york city -- one of the fir and most successful pilot projects for girls puc public schools wih which i know the presiding officer is very familiar. anand the i remember the time i invited senator barbara mikulski to texas. because she has and i have worked together supporting nasa for so many years, and this year she chair and i am the ranking member of the subcommittee. we went to the space center because i wanted her to see the great work done there. and then i tong her to the houston rodeo because i wanted her to see the texas cull tiewmplet well, i am not sure that the senator who grew up in the inner city of baltimore knew exactly how people would dress at the rodeo. but suffice it to say, there were a lot of rhinestones and

cowboy boots and big hair and big hats. senator m mikulski whispered too me during this time, "kay, if we were here monday and we went to the chamber of commerce, would these people look like this?" and i said, "yeah, pretty much." so senator mikulski and i also teamed up to pass the homemaker ira to make sure that hour stay-at-home moms and dads would have the same opportunity for retirement security savings that those who work outside the home have. and it has been a huge success. we also cosponsored the national breast and cervical cancer early detection program. she is a skilled legislator and a dear friend. senator jay rockefeller has been an outstanding chairman of the

commerce committee. we don't always agree, but as the lead democrat and republican, we have worked hard to reach consensus, and we have gotten things done. the f.a.a. bill started the planning for the next generation of air traffic control systems. the highway bill, the nasa reauthorization that ensured we would keep the focus on o space program that has been instrumental in our national security and economic development with the tremendous help from senator bill nelson, who is the only one among us today who has actually been into space. in a congress that has been marked by little progress, we have found a way forward. for some, that might not be something to take pride in, but we have served the american people by passing legislation that keeps the country running, and i am a very proud of what we

have been able to accomplish. our commer committee has been one of the most productive in the whole congress, and i count him as a friend. maria cantwell and harry reid and i have word to address the issues of our states' taxpayers to have the same deductions as those who have income taxes though we do not, and that parity has been so important. leader mitch mcconnell has guided our party and our conference through the past six years. he is a gifted leader and one that i have witnessed time and again has come up with strategies that have gotten things done in the right way. senator jon kyl and i have worked on immigration and death tax relief. senator lamar alexander and i have championed the america competes act so that we would continue the priity of scientific research and that we

would never fail to invest in our future because it is the sequel for our economy. i am very pleased that the distguished ranking member of the judiciary committeend the finance committee, finance committee now and judiciary before, is also on the floor and has been a wonderful friend to me, helping me in my very first election when he was the rock star at my fund-raisers in texas. and i thank senator orrin hatch for his long leadership in ts body. and i have had the wonderful good fortune to serve with two colleagues from my home state. first, senator phil gramm, who was a wonderful mentor and colleague. they broke the mold after senator gramm and we always

enjoyed our school rivalry, he being a texas aggie and me being a university of texas, they like to call them hopeless, but we are proud long horns. i have had a great relationship with my other senator, soon to be the senior senator from texas, john cornyn. john cornyn, i am very pleased to say is going to get the opportunity that i have had all these years when people trip up and introduce mes the senior citizen of texas. i'm happy to turn that mantle over to my colleague, senator cornyn. and i'm very proud that he is going to be the deputy republican leader in the next congress. i know he is going to be a steady hand at the wheel as we try to steer the ship of stake in the right direction. he has proven time and again that steady leadership is the one that rises to the top.

and i thank him for being on the floor as well today. in fact, i want to praise our texas congressional delegation. we call it team texas. it is a spirit that hauls our delegation together, republicans and democrats. i've noted that there are those in washington who think texans are a little too loud and we have a little too much fun. but i can assure everyone that team texas' hearts are as big as our mouths. madam president, it has been a long and wonderful 19-plus years. we hit the ground running and we've never stopped. when i was first elected in a special election in 1993, we had two, actually four full plane loads of people fly up for my swearing-in because it was a special election, we filled the entire gallery. and those rowdy texans were so

happy to watch my little swearing-in ceremony, and it was a great defor me as well as my wonderful and -- it was a great day for me as well as my wonderful and loyal supporters. i started having weekly constituent coffees that first year because there were so many visitors from texas and i wanted to make sure that at least there was one time every week that any texan who was here that wanted to see me could come and visit and was welcome. so every thursday morning around 9:00 or 9:30, the person in charge of this first effort was the wife of a three-star general who volunteered her time in our offices. and i think it was as much her handling of the events as the idea itself that has led many other senators to take u this practice and get a chance to always visit with their constituents at least once a week if they were otherwise

going to committee meetings or having to do their work and not able to see everyone. so i want to thank gert clerk for putti her stamp on our senate hospitality. some of the most powerful moments that will stay with me forever were spent with members of our military. visiting them where they are in harm's way across the world is one of the most moving of a experience i will never forget the first time in the early 1990's flying into sarajevo in an undercover sea -- c-130 described as an undercover pound of peas. danny inouye was on that flight as i look across his desk with

the white flowers as was senator ted stevens. we flew to see our troops in bosnia. later i went to spend easter with our troops where we had the most beautiful sunrise service i ever attended. it was in an open air hangar with our men and women deployed there. for the first time itas a texas guard unit that was in command of the base and it was the first time since the korean war that we had a guard unit in command of an operation overseas. and they did a great job which led to many guard units from other states also taking command of bases and operations. i flew out of baghdad. this was in the law few years -- this was in the last few years in another c-130 when there were no lights on the plane and no lights on the runway because it

was trying to make sure tha there was not any clue to the enemy that maybe we were leaving when they were firing missiles around the airport. or the times that i have visited afghanistan where the first time i visited with senator mccain and our troops were sleeping on cots. there were probably 600 or 700 cots in an old russian-built aircraft hangar before anything had been brought in for living quarters for our troops. all of their belongings were under their cots, and that was all that he had for that first mission into afghanistan. madam president, i've always been one that has such great respect and gratitude for our men and women in uniform. they put their lives on the line and pledged to give their all for our freedom. the power to wage war is an

enormous one, and the weight of its responsibility should rest heavy on our shoulders. i leave this chamber proud to have worked to assure our men and women in uniform have the best training, the best equipment and the quality of life to do the job we're asking them to do. because of my deep respect for r armed force my first choice of committees when i came in 1993 was armed services. and i was honored to be the first woman in 20 years to chair a subcommittee on armed services. the woman before me was margaret chase smith. as the only woman to chair the senate republican policy committee, i was pleased to be a part of republican leadership for many years. again, the first since margaret chase smith. when i was first running for office, i said i wanted to make things better for our sons and

open for our daughters. i leave the senate knowing that january will see the greatest number of female senators in our nation's history, and i know the torch will be carried on by the next generation. madam president, it's no secret that texans have a particular sense of pride. i'm no exception. i have deep texas roots. the senate seat that i hold in my line belong to thomas jefferson rust, my great, great-grandfather's law partner and good friend. they both signed the texas declaration of independence from mexico in 1886. that reminds me that we must protect the freedom so many ancestors fought to produce and retain. my colleague sitting on the floor is in the sam houston line and that is a proud line taofplt thomas jefferson russ and sam

houston were commander of chief and secretary of war when we fought for independence. it is so fitting that those two were our first two selected senators when texas became a state in 1845. each summer i take a week to tour one part of texas on a bus. it has been so much fun. after we did the first one, which was the el camino rale del hoyas. and we went from the louisianian border to the mexican border -- and it took us a week on the bus -- it was so great that we have done it every year since in a different part of texas. it is my state staff's favorite week all of the year as well. i am one of the few people to have had the opportunity and the

absolute pleasure to visit all 254 counties in texas. i have met texans from all walks of life, who have opened their homes, their businesses and shared their stories. madam president, i will be sad to leave, but it is time. i believe strongly that we should keep the lifeblood of congress pumping. it is good to have new waves of legislators come in with fresh ideas and perspectives after every election. but while i believe that new generations should invigorate congress, i also want to say a few words of praise for experience. knowing the history of an issue is essential to monitor progress. knowing what an agency should be doing, knowing what was put in law and why allows for better oversight. the expertise of our

longer-serving members is an essential part of good governance. i hope that some of the priorities i have championed will continue. investment in science, technology and higher education, encouraging more young people to study science, technology, engineering and math, known as stem, to make sure that we are bringing thoseoung minds with the creativity and t engineering background to create the economies for the future is so important. that has been the lifeblood of our economy, and it must continue. saving the manned space exploration program and ensuring the long-term future of nasa, an essential generator for our economy. ensuring that stay-at-home moms and dads who work so hard raising childre and contributing to the community have spousal ira's to save for

retirement. and easing the marriage tax penalty by doubling the standard deduction are just a few of the things that i hope will continue to be championed as i leave. it has been such an honor to serve in the united states senate, and i leave with the hope that the values that built america into the greatest nation on earth will be protected so that future generations will have the same opportunities that we have had in this great country and that our forebearers sacrificed so much to assure that we did. thank you,adam president. >> senator elect ted cruise will fill her seat in congress. mr. cruz won the november election against paul sadler with just over 56% of the vote. in early november kansas senator jerry moran appointed him

chairman of the senate yull committee. >> senator inouye passed way on monday at the edge of 88. he was serving his nineth term in office after winning re-election in 2010. he lost his right arm in combat in world war ii and received the medal of honor from bill clinton. senator reid paid tribute to the late senator. riendship i value so very, very much. he was a colleague but really a friend. he helped me so many times, helped me do my best here, my best has been with the help of

him. as i mentioned briefly yesterday, he always had so much confidence in me. years ago, years ago when i was a senator struggling, like all senators here, he told me two decades ago that i would be running the senate someday. i never even contemplated, thought about that, desired that. things have worked out that he was right. senator inouye is one of the finest men i have ever known. a real american hero. my friend who is on the floor, the assistant leader, has heard me talk about my mentor, michael callahan. taught me in high school, helped me with money as i was going to law school. and he was on a pension. he was a disabled veteran. he was just such a good friend of mine. he and senator inouye were friends. they talked about what it's like

to not have a limb. callahan's was a leg. inouye's was an arm. and they talked and they were friends. michael callahan worked back here as an aide to senators in summers and got to know senator inouye. my thoughts are with his family, including his wife irene, his son ken, their daughter mancheska, a stepdaughter jennifer and a granddaughter maggie, named after, of course, his first wife. their loss is the nation's loss. last night, we lost a noble soul. dan inouye lived a long and productive life. still i speak for dan's senate family when i say we're devastated by his passing.

but we will all miss him. his legacy will live in the halls of the senate and the state of hawaii as long as history is written. his place in the history books will not fade. as the second-longest serving senator in our history, senator inouye's career in congress spanned the life of hawaii's statehood, elected to the senate in 1962. only robert byrd served longer. senator inouye's tradition of service began long before he came to the united states senate. he was working as a medical volunteer when japanese warplanes attacked pearl harbor. he was just a boy, a teenager. from the time he was just a kid, he wanted to be a doctor, a medical doctor, but a different fate awaited dan inouye.

after the attack, as we all know too well, japanese americans were deemed enemy aliens and were therefore not subject to the draft. in spite of that, in spite of the humiliation, more than 110,000 people of japanese ancestry were imprisoned in american internment camps. i have seen the pictures, we have heard the stories. they were in prison. yet dan inouye and other japanese americans, in spite of the unfair designation of being an enemy alien, volunteered to fight for this nation's freedom overseas, although many of their own families were denied freedom at home while they were overseas. senator inouye fought famously with the famous 442nd

regimental combat team in world war ii and was grievously wounded in battle in italy. now, mr. president, the citation, the words for his medal of honor are as follows -- every medal of honor recipient, they write a paragraph or two about why he was given this award -- "on april 21, 1945, inouye was grievously wounded while leading an assault on a heavily defended ridge near san turazo in tuscany, italy. the ridge served as a strong point along the strip of german fortifications known as a gothic line which represent the last and most dogged line of german defense in all of italy. as he led his platoon in a flanking maneuver, three german machine guns opened fire from covered positions just 40 yards away, pinning his men to the

ground. inouye stood up to the attack and was shot in the stomach. ignoring his wound, he proceeded to attack and destroy the first machine gun nest with hand grenades and fire from his thompson sub machine gun. after being informed of the severity of his wound by his platoon sergeant, he refused treatment and rallied his men for an attack on the second machine gun position which he also successfully destroyed before collapsing from blood loss. as his squad distracted the third machine gunner, inouye called toward the final bunker, eventually drawing within ten yards. as he raised himself up and cocked his right arm to throw his last grenade into the fighting position, a german inside fired a rifle grenade that struck him in the right elbow, severing most of his arm and leaving his own primed hand grenade reflexively clenched in a fist that suddenly didn't belong to him anymore. inouye's horrified soldiers moved to his aid but he shot them back from out of fear his

severed fist would involuntary relax and drop the grenade. as a german inside the bunker reloaded his rifle, inouye pried the live grenade from his useless right hand and transferred it to his left hand. as a german aimed his rifle to finish him off, inouye tossed his grenade into the bunker and destroyed it. he stumbled to his feet and continued forward, silencing the last german resistance with a one-handed burst from his thompson before being wounded in the leg, tumbling unconscious to the bottom of the ridge. he awoke to see his concerned men of his platoon hovering over him. his only comment before being carried away was to gruffly order them to return to their positions since, as he pointed out, nobody called off the war." that is the citation on his medal of honor. his arm was later amputateed in a field hospital and he was sent back to the united states to recover, but it took years for

him to recover. i can remember in the l.b.j. room over here his talking after patty murray and others talked about what a difficult time the returning veterans were having from iraq. about some of his experiences. he took -- they trained him to drive vehicles. he took driver's license tests in more than one state. he became very personal and talked about some of the things they taught him, missing an arm, he had to do. it was a remarkable presentation that he made. senator inouye didn't talk very much. he was a silent man. didn't talk very much at all. he had a dynamic voice. we vice president felt that voice the last few years because he hasn't been as powerful as he was, as he's aged, but what a

beautiful voice he had. and that -- in that hospital they took him to in michigan, senator inouye made his two lifelong friends, one senator bob dole, who as we know, became majority leader here in the senate and the republican nominee for president of the united states. and his other lifetime friend is the late senator phil hart, who was known as the conscience of the senate and the hart building, the massive senate office building, is named after him. asked by his son why after being classified as an enemy alien he and the members of the 442nd fought so heroically, senator inouye said in his usual, calm man, for the children. and for the children there could be no finer role model than senator dan inouye. he was a recipient of the medal of honor, a congressional gold medal, the highest honor can bestow. he served the distinguished

service cross, a bronze star for valor and, of course, a purple heart. dan inouye showed the same dedication in congress he displayed on if battlefield. i want to take just a little bit here, mr. president, and talk about a meeting that i had, i mentioned it very previously last night but it was ten days ago. i knew senator inouye wasn't feeling well so i went down to his office, and he's got a remarkable office. it's a beautiful office. but there isn't one single thing on the walls depicting what a great man he is. there are no awards, there are no commemorative statues. all he has in his office are pictures of washington and hawaii. that's the humility that he showed his entire life. there was no staff there, just the two of us. we talked for an hour. and i would always remember it

but his having passed away yesterday, it will be embedded in my mind. as we left, we both lamented the fact we hadn't been able to sit down and talk like that enough. he professed at that time, these were his words, how lucky he'd bin his whole life. he said i got a little emphysema now, i said it's not from smoking, i've never seen you smoke, he said no, i learned to smoke in the war as a boy, a teenager. he smoked from 1944 to 1967. and they told him he had lung cancer. but they were wrong. but in the process they took out part of his lung out, half of his lung. he talked about how lucky he had been with surviving what he thought was lung cancer, but also how lucky he had been his whole life. for example, the war.

now, i'm sure that most people would reflect on his massive injuries that he had as being lucky, but he considered it lucky that he lived. but there were other examples he gave me. he had been called upon with three other people, three other soldiers, to cross a river in the dark of night to find out what was going on on the other side of the river. and he and his three companions in the dark of the night, they didn't have all this fancy gear to see in the dark, they did their best, they crossed that cold, cold river. and took many hours. they came back and did their report, and he laid down on his bunk and he had had an ingrown toenail, it hurt the whole -- every step he took. so he's laying on his bed and he said here's why i was so lucky. a medic came by and looked at me and look at my foot and he said you have gangrene poisoning.

we've got to get you out of here. so they took him out and he said how lucky i was, i wasn't in battle on that day when half of his companions were killed. he also talked about preparing for another battle, and he's getting ready to do this, he is a private, he may have been a corporal, i don't really remember and a sergeant came and said -- a sergeant came and said inouye, report to the colonel. so he doesn't know what's wrong, he goes and reports to the colonel. the colonel says very curtly, you have to meet with the general today. the only reason he would know to meet with the general is court-martial. that's what everybody thought. so he goes to see at headquarters. sees the general. the general tells senator inouye, i'm promoting you to be

a lieutenant. it was a battlefield promotion. but he said i was lucky. i lucky i became after officer but lucky i wasn't in the fight that day because we also had huge losses. when he scheduled to come back to america, another one of his lucky experiences, they have a transport plane to take him back to america. his arm is gone by then. and he's told we don't have room for another litter, another patient on the airplane. you can't go. so, of course, is disappointed. the plane crashed and killed everybody on the plane. so dan inouye was a person who considered himself lucky. those of us who knew senator inouye consider ourselves lucky just being able to know the man. after hawaii received its statehood in 1959, dan inouye served as the state's first

congressman. three years later, he was elected to the senate and he's been a soft but powerful voice for the people of hawaii ever since. the many personal courtesies he's extended me i will never forget. may not seem like much but i had something where i was scheduled to be in florida, and i had promoted this, the great -- i was a new senator, the great senator inouye was going to be there. and i got a call from henne juni, used to be the sergeant at arms, for a long time senator inouye's chief of staff. he said i've checked his schedule, it's his wife's birthday and he's not going to be able to go. he said i understand that. within an hour i got a call from senator inouye. he said millie understands that totally. he said we'll celebrate the birthday the day after tomorrow when i come back. so he just was somebody who was just so sacrificial to other

senators. as senator inouye's colleague from hawaii, senator akaka said last night, -- quote -- "his legacy can be seen in every mile of every road in hawaii and every nature preserve and every facility that makes hawaii a better place. he fulfilled his dream of creating a better hawaii." he was a strong supporter of the university of hawaii, a strong supporter of george washington university law school, he got his bamp lower's in hawaii, his law degree at george washington. he was determined -- a determined representative of the fighting men and women, a longtime leader of the defense appropriations subcommittee. as i mentioned briefly last night, there has been in my many years in congress, i have been here as long as my friend,

the assistant leader here, who is seated next to me today, we've been here 30 years. and there's been no one i've ever known in my 30 years here who did more and fought more for the fighting men and women of this country. he believed the nation's commitment to the members of its armed forces didn't earned with their -- end with their service. mr. president, for fear it would be lost and it shouldn't be lost, i want to spread on the record what this good man did at a prayer breakfast a couple of months ago. i can't remember if the presiding officer was at the prayer breakfast but i know that my friend, the assistant leader, was there. senator inouye had never, ever in his 50 years in congress cong spoken at a a prayer breakfast but he decided to come. he had great vigor until just recently. he campaigned in this last cycle. he traveled to alaska to help

senator begich a few months ago. he campaigned in nevada and arizona and all over the country. he had great vigor. but he came to the prayer breakfast and talked to us about his experiences. when he was a boy, he never, ever had a gun. that wasn't anything people did in hawaii. and so he was surprised when he got in the army he was such a great shot. he was the best. the best. and as a result of that, he became a sniper in the european theater. and with great humility, he explained he can remember killing his first person, and he can remember they were trying to take a farmhouse and they shot a bazooka into it and he rushed in and there was a man

there. and the man reached in his pocket, of course, senator inouye thought it was for a weapon and he was killed. and inouye saw that he reached for a picture of his family. he said he came to the realization at that time that he wasn't killing enemy soldiers, he was killing other human beings. and although he had to continue doing what he did, he ended his presentation by saying i know exactly how many people that i killed. he said a lot of people go to bed at night counting sheep. even though i'm an old man, i go to bed at night many times counting people. he was somebody who as a result of his experiences voted against war from then on. he didn't support the vietnam war. iraq war one and two, afghanistan, even though he made sure that these people had

all the supplies they needed, our military force. they are the greatest fighting force in the world, and a lot of it is directly he attributable to senator inouye. talking about bipartisanship, he lived that. he was a fine democrat. he was a progressive testimony and was proud of that. but he never hesitated to cross over and work with other senators. and the best example of that was senator stevens, who was killed in an airplane crash fairly recently in alaska. hawaii and alaska, these two fine men representing the two newest states of the union became like brothers and that is the truth. so, mr. president, it's really a shame that dan isn't with us anymore. he was never afraid to speak out against discrimination and was an important advocate for native hawaiians and native pacific islanders. he was the chair of the indian

affairs committee. prior to that time, with all due respect to other chairs, it wasn't a committee people knew much about. senator inouye made that a powerful committee. he traveled the country, receiving all the accolades from these tribes who had never been recognized, who had never had someone that became their advocate and he was. he put the indian affairs committee on the map. served as chairman. commerce committee, the appropriations committee, president pro tem of the senate, the first chair of the committee on intelligence. he served as a member of the watergate committee and chairman of the special committee investigating the iran-contra affair. i repeat, mr. president, this man has been one of the greatest senators in the history of this great country. he had a deserved reputation as a bipartisan bridge builder. he always put his country first and his party send. in 1968 senator inouye gave a

memorable key note speech at the democratic convention. he spoke eloquently of the country's struggles with racism. he also spoke from the heart. this is what he said and i quote, "i wish to share with you a most sacred word of hawaii, it's aloha. to some of you who have visited us, it may have meant hello. to others aloha may have bent goodbye. but to those of us privileged to live in hawaii, aloha means i love you. so to all of you, my fellow americans, aloha. that's what he said those many years ago. so today it's with a heavy heart that those of us who love senator inouye say aloha to a great man, a legend of the senate and his final dying word, mr. president, was "aloha." it didn't mean goodbye. it meant "i love you." nd senator inouye, i love you.

>> the final service for the . late hawaii senator will be held tomorrow in his home state at the national memorial cemetery at the pacific. tonight on c-span the life and legacy of late west virginia senator. first, an announcement by governor nicki haley. , followed by senator jim demint's speech from earlier this week and kay bailey hutchison's farewell address. tomorrow on "newsmakers" we're joined by eliot engel. he'll talk about how the house is weighing issues around the

attack in began city and hearings held last week on the attack. join us at 10:00 eastern. >> times are different. when i first came to washington as a staff member chairman of the rose committee. they would flay gin rummy in the capitol and my job was to pour the cheap bourbon. john has made the point many times, when you've had dinner with somebody and you go out with your families, you are less inclined to cut their throat politically. >> jack kemp became the ranking member. jack and i used to go out and have meals together and talk football half the time then budget. even though we disagreed

significantly on almost everything, we learned to like each other. he was not evil and i was not evil. the problems you have now is people think that the guy on the other side or the guy on the other side is pure evil and my job is to blow them up. >> monday, form members of congress look at the relationships of congress have changed for the worst. continuing four days of american history tv through christmas day on c-span 3. >> next a tribute to the late west virginia senator robert byrd on what would have been his 95th birthday. he was the longest-serving u.s. senator and congress. he was elected in 1952 and the u.s. senate in 1958. he passed away in june of 2010. two former staff ers, talked about the late senator's life, his life in politics and his

rise to leadership in the senate. this is an hour. >> our first >> the first speaker is ira shapiro. he played important roles in foreign intelligence surveillance and the completing of the metrorail system. during the clinton administration, he served as a leading u.s. trader and earned the rank of staffman. he was described as an antidote and he promised to deliver. and he promised to deliver. cynicismote to c